Device for coating animal hides



y 6 J; STRNAD ETAL 3,099,148

DEvicE FOR comm; ANIMAL moms Filed June 28, 1961 INVENTORS To 5 6/ ffrn 670; 77/1 d/fz/r United States Patent The present invention relates to a device for apply ing chemicals to animal hides for the purpose of removing hair from the same. More specifically, the invention is directed to improvements in hair removing devices of the type comprising means for conveying the hides, means for guiding the travelling hides and means for applying a chemical, preferably a sulphide paste, to the underside (flesh side) of the hide, said chemical acting upon the hair roots and thereby effecting the loosening of the hair and the faultless removal of the hair from the hides.

In the heretofore known processes for removing hair from hides spraying guns or rotating brushes dipped in a depilating solution have been used. If the spraying guns are used, clogging of the gun nozzles frequently occurs, and can be avoided by preliminary filtering of the liquids. A further disadvantage inherent in the use of either spray guns or brushes is not only the soiling of the entire apparatus for applying the chemical, but also the fact that the hair side of the hide becomes soiled, with the result that the quality of the hair is impaired.

The present invention has as its object to avoid the aforesaid disadvantages.

According to the main feature of the invention the apparatus comprises individual or separate conveying means, guiding means and coating means arranged in such a way that the guiding means continuously conveys the hides to the periphery of a coating roller, whose peripheral speed exceeds the speed of the conveying means, with the result that, in cooperation with the means for guiding the hides, a coat of uniform thickness is produced on the flesh side of the hide.

Since the means by which the hides are conveyed are completely separated from the means serving to coat the hide, any soiling of the conveying mechanism itself, and also of the hair side of the side is avoided.

Further advantages and features of the present invention will appear from the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment of the new device, with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic side view of the device for applying chemicals to remove hair from animal hides,

and

FIGURE 2 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the cooperation between a coating roller and a pressure roller included in the device of FIGURE 1.

Mounted in bearings 14 which are fixed to a frame 15 of the machine is a shaft 11 carrying a coating roller 1 composed of longitudinal rails 12. The surface of the coating roller 1 is provided with a covering 2 of jute, foam rubber or any other resilient synthetic material. The coating roller 1 has at least one third of its circumference submerged in a container 3 provided underneath and filled with sulphide paste or another liquid suitably affecting the hair roots of animal hides.

Journalled in bearings 16 which are fixed to the frame 15 is a shaft 17 carrying a driving roller 7, and a shaft 17' is mounted in bearings 16' also fixed to the frame 15 and carries a roller 9. Running around rollers 7 and 9 is an endless belt a of rubber, plastic or other material so as to form a conveying mechanism 5 which is independent of the coating roller 1.

In a projecting portion 18 of the frame 15 above the Patented July 30, 1963 roller 7 a pressure roller 8 is arranged on a shaft 19, the roller 8 being displacea'ble in vertical direction in a guide formed by the projecting portion 18. On a plate 20 which is rigidly connected to the frame 15, an adjustably spring-loaded, vertically movable roller 6 is placed between the driving roller 7 of the conveying mechanism and the coating roller 1, the roller 6 being driven from the roller 7 by means of a belt 10. Further, the closest approach of the roller 6 to the roller 1 is adjustable so that the initial distance therebetween is less than the combined thickness of the hide K and of the coating H picked-up by the roller 1 and greater than the thickness of coating H.

The described device operates as follows:

The operator takes each of the hide K and places it, with its flesh side down, upon the surface of the grooved or otherwise roughened endless belt 5a and with the hind legs of the hide facing forward i.e. in the direction of movement indicated by the arrows S (FIG. 1). As soon as the hide is caught by the pressure roller 8, which is freely movable in vertical direction in its guide, the operator straightens and smoothes the front legs and the neck of the hide K, which passes smoothly between the driving roller 7 and the vertically yielding pressure roller 8. Meanwhile the operator prepares the next hide. After the hide K has passed between the rollers 7 and 8, the leading end portion of the hide K drops onto the surface of the coating rolller 1, which first engages the hind legs and pulls them under the spring-loaded roller 6, whereupon the remainder of the hide is drawn onto the surface of the coating roller 1. The coating roller 1 direction of the arrow P with a higher peripheral speed than that of the conveying mechanism 5, 5a. This enables the surface of the roller 1 covered with jute, foam rubber or with any other synthetic material which dips into, and picks-up a layer H of the coating emulsion of liquid from the vessel 3, to coat the flesh-side of the hide K with a deposit of uniform thickness in cooperation with the guiding rolller 6. As shown in FIG. 2, this is made possible by adjusting the spring-loading on the roller 6, which is vertically movable so that the distance x between the surface of the roller 6 and the surface of the roller 1 varies to maintain the required uniform thickness of the coating H on the hide K as the thickness of the latter varies.

As shown in FIGURE 2, the thickness of the coat emulsion H accumulated below the roller 6 by the roller 1 rotating in the direction of the arrow P, is reduced to a uniform thickness by the pressure of the spring-loaded roller 6. After the entire hide has passed between the rollers 6 and 1, another operator seizes it by the legs at the opposite end of the machine, takes it off the surface of the roller 1 and places it aside on a pile in which the successsive hides are inverted with respect to each other, whereby adjacent hides contact each other either with their hairy sides or their coated sides, with the result that entirely unimpaired bristles or hair are obtained from the hides. After placing a further hide K with its fleshside on the surface of the endless belt 5a, the whole cycle of operations is repeated.

The device embodying no means limited to use in with advantage in connecting with fleshingdressing operations.

An important advantage of the new device is its simplicity. It is a further advantage that, as the conveying mechanism does not come at all into contact with the coating paste or other emulsion, the operator need not use protective gloves and glasses against the noxious effects of the chemical used. Another advantage of the invention is a substantial increase in productivity and higher quality of the hair obtained in the process.

the invention is, of course, by carroting fur, but can be used or other hide- What we claim is:

1. A device for coating theskin sides of animal hides with a depilating substance so as to eflfect removal of hair therefrom, comprising (A) a coating roller driven at 'a ripheral speed;

(B) a tank containing a depilating substance and having said coating roller partly immersed therein so that said roller picks-up a layer of said substance on its surface during movement of the latter through the tank;

(C) conveying means including an endless belt having a substantially horizontal operative run extending toward said surface of the coating roller adjacent the top of the latter and adapted to receive the successive hides with the skin sides of the latter facing downwardly thereon, and a drive roller having said .belt running therearound at the end of said run closest to said coating roller, with said drive roller being spaced substantially from said coating roller and having a relatively slow peripheral speed substantially less than said predetermined peripheral speed of the coating roller; and

(D) a vertically movable guide roller disposed between, and spaced from drive roller of the conveying means and said coating roller, and spring means yieldably urging said guide roller downwandly toward the surface of the coating roller so that, as

predetermined pe- 4- each hide is advanced to said surface of the coating roller at said relatively slow speed, the hide is gripped between said coating roller and said guide roller and said spring means acting on the latter produces a pressure for uniformly reducing the thickness of the layer of depilating substance between the coating rolller and hide and which is transferred to the skin side of the hide from the coating roller.

2. A device as in claim 1; further comprising drive means connecting said drive roller with said guide roller and efiecting rotation of the latter in the direction opposed to the rotation of said coating roller.

3. A device as in claim 1; wherein said coating roller includes a circularly arranged series ofaxially extending rails, and a covering of resilient material absorbing the depilating substance and constituting said surface of the coating roller.

4. A device as in claim 1; further comprising a pressure roller disposed above said drive roller of the conveying means and acting downwardly on the successive hides carried by said Illl'f'-'0f the belt to ensure the nonslip engagement of each hide with the conveyor means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 544,693 Sanders Aug. 20, 1895 1,809,909 Pierine June 16, 1931 2,479,466 Braun Aug. 16, 1949 

1. A DEVICE FOR COATING THE SKIN SIDES OF ANIMAL HIDES WITH A DEPILATING SUBSTANCE SO AS TO EFFECT REMOVAL OF HAIR THEREFROM, COMPRISING (A) A COATING ROLLER DRIVEN AT A PREDETERMINED PERIPHERAL SPEED; (B) A TANK CONTAINING A DEPILATING SUBSTANCE AND HAVING SAID COATING ROLLER PARTLY IMMERSED THEREIN TO THAT SAID ROLLER PICKS-UP A LAYER OF SAID SUBSTANCE ON ITS SURFACE DURING MOVEMENT OF THE LATTER THROUGH THE TANK; (C) CONVEYING MEANS INCLUDING AN ENDLESS BELT HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL OPERATIVE RUN EXTENDING TOWARD SAID SURFACE OF THE COATING ROLLER ADJACENT THE TOP OF THE LATTER AND ADAPTED TO RECEIVE THE SUCCESSIVE HIDES WITH THE SKIN SIDES OF THE LATTER FACING DOWNWARDLY THEREON, AND A DRIVE ROLLER HAVING SAID BELT RUNNING THEREAROUND AT THE END OF SAID RUN CLOSEST TO SAID COATING ROLLER, WITH SAID DRIVE ROLLER BEING SPACED SUBSTANTIALLY FROM SAID COATING ROLLER AND HAVING A RELATIVELY SLOW PERIPHERAL SPEED SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN SAID PREDETERMINED PERIPHERAL SPEED OF THE COATING ROLLER; AND (D) A VERTICALLY MOVABLE GUIDE ROLLER DISPOSED BETWEEN, SAID SPACED FROM DRIVE ROLLER OF THE CONVEYING MEANS AND SAID COATING ROLLER, AND SPRING MEANS YIELDABLY URGING SAID GUIDE ROLLER DOWNWARDLY TOWARD THE SURFACE OF THE COATING ROLLER SO THAT, AS EACH HIDE IS ADVANCED TO SAID SURFACE OF THE COATING ROLLER AT SAID RELATIVELY SLOW SPEED, THE HIDE IS GRIPPED BETWEEN SAID COATING ROLLER AND SAID GUIDE ROLLER AND SAID SPRING MEANS ACTING ON THE LATTER PRODUCES A PRESSURE FOR UNIFORMLY REDUCING THE THICKNESS OF THE LAYER OF DEPILATING SUBSTANCE BETWEEN THE COATING ROLLER AND HIDE AND WHICH IS TRANSFERRED TO THE SKIN SIDE OF THE HIDE FROM THE COATING ROLLER. 